A blind rivet comprises a tubular rivet body in which is mounted a mandrel having a head portion at the narrow stem of the rivet so that when this mandrel is pulled back in the rivet it upsets the rivet. When pulling-back of the mandrel is resisted with a predetermined force the mandrel breaks off. A riveter that operates with such rivets typically has a housing formed at its front end with an aperture through which the rivet mandrel is engaged. Within the housing is a chuck that engages tightly around the mandrel and actuating mechanism is provided to pull this chuck backwardly, thereby upsetting the rivet and breaking off the mandrel. For small-scale operation the operator manually fits a new rivet to the front end of his riveter after each operation.
Devices are also known, as seen for instance in published German application 2,132,286 and in German Pat. No. 2,225,058, wherein a feed duct or tube is provided which extends between the riveter and a rivet supply. The nose or tip of the riveter containing the reciprocal chuck must move between a riveting position directed outwardly so that a rivet engaged in the tip of the nose can be inserted in a hole of the workpiece to be riveted, and a loading position in which the tip of the nose fits within the loading device. Thus after each riveting operation this nose must swing from the riveting position into the loading position, and fit exactly against the loading device so as to take up a fresh rivet. Not only is such a mechanism relatively complicated, but a certain amount of production time is lost in each riveting operation while the riveter is reloaded. In addition such a riveter is rather bulky.
Another type of riveter is known, as seen for instance in German patent No. 2,113,664, wherein a tape formed with a row of holes in each of which is engaged a single blind rivet passes transversely through the nose of the riveter. Mechanism is provided on the riveter to take the broken-off mandrel from an earlier riveting operation out of the chuck and insert it through the tape and to pull a fresh rivet out of the tape and insert it in the chuck. In order to be practical such a device must use a relatively long tape so that a bulky and work-obscuring tool is obtained. Furthermore the use of the tape increases the rivet cost and discarding of this tape with a row of mandrels pierced through it again increases production cost. The provision at the nose or head of the apparatus of the various devices for displacing and locking the rivet tape increases the size and complexity of the unit, making it more expensive and less easy to use.